Title Nine-Forty Years Later

It’s very likely many athletes in Kentucky high schools are not aware of a 1972 educational amendment which changed the face of athletics. A panel discussion in recognition of the 40th anniversary of the Title Nine ruling was held Wednesday at Midway College. The landmark legislation banned sex discrimination in schools for both academics and athletics.

Kathy DeBoer, former UK Assistant Athletics Director participated in the program yesterday.

“So, if you say to them, hey do you know about title nine, they’ll go title what? What is it? And if you say to them, have you ever been discriminate against because you’re a girl playing on a soccer team or a volleyball team. They’ll go, no why would that happen. That all happened in 40 years,” said DeBoer.

DeBoer graduated from high school in 1973 and says there were lots of questions during that time period.

“And at that point in time, it couldn’t go fast enough. I mean it’s like, Well, what’s taking so long here? You know, why don’t we have the same things that the guys have, you know. Why don’t we have scholarships and why aren’t we riding on a charter bus instead of driving around in our own cars. Why don’t we have a decent pair of shoes?” said DeBoer.

DeBoer says there’s still room to grow. She says women’s sports are not a blip on the radar screen as a marketplace driver. Also participating in the Midway College program were Myra Blackwelter, a former pro golfer, former UK women’s basketball player Stacey Reed Sheppard, and Olympic Gold Medalist diver Micki King.